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Net Metering Program
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Montana-Dakota Utilities net metering in Wyoming

Sheridan and nearby Sheridan County communities: Acme, Big Horn, Dayton, Ranchester and Story. A small Wyoming territory of a utility that also operates in Montana and the Dakotas.

Type
Investor owned
Accounts
18K

What they credit you

Carried forward in kWh, surplus bought each January at 3.7 cents

Published terms

Under Rate 58, a month’s net generation is credited in kilowatt hours to the next month’s bill, offsetting usage at the full energy rate of about 11.5 cents. Whatever is left at the start of each calendar year is bought at the Rate 57 avoided cost energy payment, 3.728 cents a kWh from 1 May 2026.

Month to month
Net kilowatt hours are credited to the next month’s bill through the calendar year.
Once a year
At the start of each calendar year, the balance is bought at 3.728 cents a kWh.

Published terms · checked 2026-10-01 · source

Installers serving MDU customers

Pick one. Only the company you choose receives your details, and only that company calls you.

Not sure which to choose?

These are real companies operating in MDU territory, ordered by reviews, years trading and BBB grade. None of them pays us for placement. Pick the one you want and we will call you to arrange it.

Ordering combines three things we read from primary sources: Google review count and rating, years trading taken from the company’s Better Business Bureau profile rather than its own marketing, and its BBB letter grade. BBB accreditation is shown but never scored, because it is a paid membership rather than a mark of quality.

Check any contractor license yourself at the state register. Do that before you sign anything, with any company, including ours.

What this looks like on a MDU bill

An average Wyoming household, against a system sized to cover its year. The energy charge is the part that goes to zero. The fixed monthly charge underneath it is the part that never does, and it is the number that decides whether a system pays for itself.

Meter readingkWh
Energy charge$131.52
$131.52
We have read this provider’s own tariff. What it still bills you at zero is set out below, with the sheet it came from. The energy line above uses the statewide average. See what they still bill
DirectionReading…

Meter reading falling from 41926 to 41685 kilowatt hours. A 863 kilowatt hour month against 1,104 kilowatt hours produced leaves 0 kilowatt hours billed and 241 banked for next month, so the energy charge falls from $131.52 to $0.00 at 15.24 cents per kilowatt hour.

Wyoming average household use, 863 kWh a month, at the current published residential price of 15.24¢ per kWh. Your utility still bills a fixed monthly customer charge that no system offsets, so this is the energy part of the bill, which is the part that goes away.

What your installer should be telling you

The basic service charge, about $35 a month, is billed whatever the panels produce, and a January balance is bought at about a third of retail. Size to what the house uses.

What MDU bills you anyway

In a month when your production covers everything you use, the energy charge can reach zero. This does not. It is the floor under every bill, and it is the number that decides whether a system pays for itself.

The charge
$1.154 a day, about $35.10 a month
How it is set
Residential Electric Service Rate 10 bills a Basic Service Charge of $1.154 a day for service from 1 April 2026, set in Montana-Dakota’s Wyoming rate case (Docket 20004-174-ER-25), and its minimum bill is the “Basic Service Charge.” That is about $35.10 in an average month. Energy is 5.537 cents a kilowatt hour, and with the power supply cost adjustment of 5.932 cents from 1 May 2026 it totals 11.469 cents. Under Net Metering Service Rate 58, for systems up to 25 kW, the basic service charge is billed every month. When you use more than you generate, the net kilowatt hours are charged at the full energy rate including the power supply adjustment; when you generate more, the net kilowatt hours are credited to the next month’s bill. At the start of each calendar year, any balance left from the previous year is bought at the avoided cost energy payment under Parallel Generation Rate 57, 3.728 cents a kilowatt hour from 1 May 2026.

Montana-Dakota Utilities Co., W.P.S.C. Tariff No. 2: Residential Electric Service Rate 10, Sheet No. 6, and Net Metering Service Rate 58, Sheet Nos. 72 to 72.2, effective 1 April 2026 (Docket 20004-174-ER-25); Rate Summary Sheet Nos. 4 and 4.1, effective 1 May 2026; Communities Served, Sheet No. 3 · checked 2026-10-01 · source

Applying to MDU

What MDU itself requires, as distinct from what the state rule requires. Read from its own published guidelines on the date shown.

25 kilowatts per system, and no cap on the program
Wyo. Stat. § 37-16-101 defines a net metering system as one of not more than 25 kW, and the statute sets no limit on how many customers may net meter.
Municipal systems are excluded
The statute reaches investor owned utilities, cooperatives and irrigation districts, but not municipalities. If your bill comes from a town, ask what it offers rather than what the state requires.
January buys the leftover at avoided cost
At the beginning of each calendar year, unused kilowatt hour credit from the previous year is sold to the utility at its filed avoided cost, a small fraction of what the same kilowatt hour costs to buy.
25 kW binds a ranch long before it binds a house
For an ordinary home it is ample. For agricultural or small commercial load it is frequently the number that decides the design, so check it first.

From MDU’s published guidelines · checked 2026-10-07 · source

MDU net metering questions

Does MDU offer one for one net metering?
Yes. Under Rate 58, a month’s net generation is credited in kilowatt hours to the next month’s bill, offsetting usage at the full energy rate of about 11.5 cents. Whatever is left at the start of each calendar year is bought at the Rate 57 avoided cost energy payment, 3.728 cents a kWh from 1 May 2026. Net kilowatt hours are credited to the next month’s bill through the calendar year.
What does MDU pay for power sent back to the grid?
Carried forward in kWh, surplus bought each January at 3.7 cents. At the start of each calendar year, the balance is bought at 3.728 cents a kWh.
Do I need a battery with MDU?
Not for the economics. MDU credits exports at the retail rate, so power you send out during the day comes back at the same value after dark without storage. A battery is still worth considering for outages during hurricane season, but it is an upgrade here rather than a requirement.
How do I find my MDU bill?
Sign in at montana-dakota.com. Open My Account, then Billing. Open the latest bill and save the PDF. Or screenshot the summary page. If you cannot get to it, a rough guess at your average monthly amount is enough to start.
What is the catch with MDU?
The basic service charge, about $35 a month, is billed whatever the panels produce, and a January balance is bought at about a third of retail. Size to what the house uses.